| Comments on the competition |
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| 1. |
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Blimey, this was almost a contest to see who could make the longest sentence using synonyms. Personally I prefer multiple definition clues where each definition comes from a different headword in Chambers so many of these didn't find favour with me.
I thought that there would be a lot of 'the end is nigh' clues and expected a lot of 'sticky end' clues too so stayed away from using both of those. However, one could argue that they are the perfect clues for the word and I may have to admit I got that wrong. I am a bit out of my depth marking which is the best, but I am going to go for the ones without capitals and without punctuation as I don't think either is really warranted, but I am just being pernickety to find a winner. |
| 2. |
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| 'The end is near/nigh' is very neat, but a little too popular and unoriginal for points. Some of the multi definition clues were much too forced. 7 or 8 defs is just showing off, if you ask me! You need a decent surface reading. |
| 3. |
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This competition was always going to attract double definitions, but many more than three (even then, the clue should be very impressive) seems like showing off. Some, like 27 or 31, didn't make enough sense on the surface to pass muster.
"The end is nigh" or a derivative, is a nice idea but too obvious, both in solvability and as a response to this competition. I imagine many more came up with it, as I did, but dismissed it for that reason. |
| 4. |
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A short word with 2 main meanings this month. Derived meanings within these groups tempted exactly one third of setters to offer multiple definition clues, but these were fraught with dangers and rarely successful in the case of the higher multiples. There were 12 double definition clues (2, 4, 17, 21, 27, 41, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49 and 50*), 1 triple (51), 3 quadruple (3, 9 and 11), 1 quintuple (16), 1 septuple (37) and even 1 octuplet (5), a whacking total of 19 clues comprising 59 definitions ! 33 of these related to 'near' or 'enclosed', 23 to 'end' and 3 to famous people. One of the main hazards turned out to be the use of link words. When a solver is faced with what looks like a link word, it's reasonable to assume that the clue structure might be one of the following:
(a) Definition from wordplay
(b) Wordplay for definition
(c) Definition equals definition
When a clue contains more than two definitions it therefore seems illogical to have an arbitrary number of link words, for example the 'in' and 'of' in clue 5, the 'of' in clue 3 and the 'for' in clue 51. It's also vital that the surface reading justifies the inclusion of so many different definitions, rather than reading as a string of words telling an improbable or uninteresting tale. In this respect clue 5 was more successful than others (11, 16 and 37). Finally, mixing wordplay with multiple definitions is a definite no-no – clues 2, 3 and 17 illustrate how difficult this can make the solver's task. |
| 5. |
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| The fact that there were six nearly identical good clues – many of the differences being only in punctuation and capitalization – made it very hard to mark this competition fairly, even given the dispensation in the case of the two pairs that were exactly identical. The capital 'E' for 'End" perhaps gives 47 a minuscule edge, but this is arguably counterbalanced by the full stop, where convention would suggest no punctuation (48 and 49) or, in this case, perhaps better an exclamation mark 50; on the other hand, "nigh" strikes me as preferable to "near" in this context. To have given all these clues their due equally would have left little scope to reward others equally good. It might have been marginally better to ignore the punctuation and capitalization and to allow everyone to vote only once for the four clues 47-50. |
| Comments on the clues |
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| 1. A STORAGE CONTAINER THAT IS NOT QUITE SHUT. (NOT THE 4 LETTER ANSWER, BUT THE 5 LETTER ANSWER) |
| 1. | Double definition. Why the captilisation and bracketed explanation on enumeration? | | 2. | It's an excellent clue to AJAR but rather awkward WP for CLOSE – not sure a closet is a 'storage container'. | | 3. | The caps was annoying, but the clue was solid for me both on surface and wordplay. Works one way only, given an enumeration. | | 4. | Adding the AJAR element to this just confuses things. |
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| 2. About to suffer defeat? The end is nigh! |
| 1. | Alhough the surface reading is good, mixing multiple definitions with WP is rather awkward (see also clues 3 and 17). |
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| 3. Actor near to end of road? Start to convince to throw in the towel. |
| 1. | The single link word isn't really appropriate here, best to avoid wordplay when using multiple definitions (see also clues 2 and 17). |
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| 4. Adjourn court |
| 1. | Surface reading lacks much interest. |
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| 5. Agree to unite secretly in intimate encounter near the end of narrow passage |
| 1. | Really!! Well done!! | | 2. | It's a nice surface but far too many definitions, made more confusing by the 'in' and 'of' (by comparison see clue 9). | | 3. | Five points for the effort, though some definitions are not quite distinct. | | 4. | Too much. |
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| 6. Area outside of a cathedral or church holding worship in times gone by |
| 1. | Nice surface reading, though 'of' not required. | | 2. | Nicely worded if a little long |
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| 7. Aroused, Cleo and Sidney, initially become inseparable! |
| 1. | Definition seems rather imprecise and the punctuation spoils the wordplay. |
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| 8. Astronaut finally 'gone': John Glenn stars in Mars Attack!? |
| 1. | The definition needs the 'who' to be fair to the solver, the wordplay lacks 'from' to indicate the removal's location. | | 2. | Was there an astronaut Close? Wasn't the film called Mars Attacks? |
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| 9. Block quiet road near the end |
| 1. | One of the more successful attempts at a multiple definition clue. |
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| 10. Breathless hush here – Colonel’s first to come to grief? |
| 1. | Why the interrogation ? | | 2. | A little too obscure for me. |
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| 11. Careful approaching road block |
| 1. | Surface reading seems to lack a main subject, 'approaching' = 'close to/on', use of a euphemism requires some indication to be fair. |
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| 12. Church setting for
rising sun |
| 1. | Unfortunately 'for rising sun' isn't really required in definition, so not & lit. ('for' seems otiose in WP also). |
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| 13. Cigarless, ironically? |
| 1. | "Not cigarless, surely ?" | | 2. | Clever double entendre | | 3. | Ironically, close, but no cigar. |
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| 14. Cole's ruined Dead End Street |
| 1. | Very ingenious, though I would prefer to see Dead End Street italicised. |
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| 15. Confirm a sale this fair man arranged |
| 1. | "Confirm a sale might be arranged for this fair man" – but where is the definition ? | | 2. | Definition? |
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| 16. Congested street near Cathedral precinct shut for 5 terms |
| 1. | Probably better to avoid "padding" in multiple definition clues. |
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| 17. Conservative Left sides with 'oddballs' on Europe: the end is nigh |
| 1. | Mixing multiple definitions with WP (which requires 'sides of oddballs')is rather awkward (see also clues 2 and 3). |
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| 18. Consummate out of the closet! |
| 1. | It's best to hide answers across two or more clue words eg 'Stoic loser' – why is 'out' italicised ? | | 2. | I wouldn't call that hidden | | 3. | Not very well hidden. |
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| 19. Cosell rambling interminably … "SHUT UP!" |
| 1. | Capital letters not really necessary with the exclamation mark ? | | 2. | Would have liked 'interminably' to stay closer to the fodder Cosell. |
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| 20. Disclosing centre of East End? |
| 1. | Surely the wordplay should read 'centre of disclosing' ? Even so, the surface reading seems awkward. |
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| 21. End is near |
| 1. | Requires the definite article at the start (see clues 45, 46, 47, 48, 49 and 50). |
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| 22. England captain turned around following tip from The Sun |
| 1. | WP is just a little too convoluted and definition rather vague – perhaps 'Former England cricket captain' would be better ? (see clue 51). |
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| 23. For those starting college, lots of serious exams aren't far away. |
| 1. | 'For' unnecessary in wordplay, 'are not' shouldn't be contracted. | | 2. | 'Are not' would be better that 'aren't', but 'for' is still redundant |
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| 24. Go down on head in class getting intimate |
| 1. | Wordplay and linkword rather awkward, surface bizarre ! |
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| 25. Having been enclosed behind veg, Anne expired; lack of air. |
| 1. | Seems to define 'closeness', lack of anagram indicator, who was Anne ? |
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| 26. I left church embracing Lois Lane! |
| 1. | Unfortunately 'left' is the wrong tense to work properly in the wordplay. |
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| 27. Intimate at hand |
| 1. | Such a short clue needs to have much more meaning to be effective (compare with clues 45, 46, 47, 48, 49 and 50). |
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| 28. It's kind of Queen to finish off. |
| 1. | Wordplay requires 'with' not 'to' and clue requires a separate definition as it's not an & lit. | | 2. | Seems more like an unfinished queen than one finished off. |
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| 29. Narrow victory for Labour? |
| 1. | I like this idea but should it not be 'ConservativeS lose' or 'Conservative loses'? | | 2. | Why not 'Narrow Labour win?' |
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| 30. Near a hundred are beaten. |
| 1. | That's a big omelette !! Perhaps 'nearly' would read more smoothly (see clue 32). |
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| 31. Near squared? |
| 1. | 'Near' and 'close' share many meanings, so why choose just these two – suspect you mean 'twice' rather than 'squared' ? Surface lacks sense. |
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| 32. Nearly, not completely conceal |
| 1. | Surface reading seems rather awkward. |
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| 33. Outfit heard seal |
| 1. | A close homophone, maybe, but not a homophone for close; surface reading lacks meaning. | | 2. | Only if you speak to quickly. |
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| 34. Private company linked to top London social sciences university |
| 1. | This would usually parse as COLSE, a better indicator is needed. | | 2. | Wordplay seems a tad vague, surface could be more inspiring perhaps ? |
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| 35. Scallops we shared evenly made us like bosom pals |
| 1. | 'shared' and 'us' seem redundant in the wordplay, surface scenario seems a bit unlikely perhaps ? |
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| 36. Short cover left our soldiers exposed at first. |
| 1. | Best of the acrostics | | 2. | Surface reading seems a little awkward – why only 'at first' ? |
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| 37. Shut end near mean, stuffy, dense actress |
| 1. | Much too forced. | | 2. | Unfortunately this seems like a random collection of synonyms with no coherent surface meaning (compare with clue 5). |
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| 39. Small room, though lacking central heating, is uncomfortably warm |
| 1. | Does 'central heating' = 'heating's centre' ? |
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| 40. Start to cry over shed, it's almost touching |
| 1. | Surface reading seems odd ('over' can be used in across clues too). |
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| 41. Sticky end |
| 1. | Very good, I haven't seen this idea before | | 2. | The best of the double definitions, a nice contrast between the two parts, and they do fit well together. | | 3. | This gets the prize for the shortest clue, but a good surface reading usually requires a verb as well ! |
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| 42. Stuffy head can pound round sinuses; behind eyes primarily. |
| 1. | 'head can' doesn't equal 'head of can', 'behind' seems redundant in the wordplay, surface reading a bit awkward perhaps ? | | 2. | Best of the lot. |
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| 43. Such a defeat can bring solace |
| 1. | Unfortunately 'defeat' is not really an anagram indicator. " A ——— upset might provide solace" |
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| 44. Swinging couples at university shunned in the neighbourhood |
| 1. | Unfortunately the three elements don't really gel into a smooth surface reading. |
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| 45. The end is near! |
| 1. | Clever surface reading, though 'nigh' is perhaps the better recognised version ? |
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| 47. The End is nigh. |
| 1. | Might be better as an exclamation (see clue 50). |
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| 49. The end is nigh |
| 1. | Despite its brevity the surface reading is excellent – perhaps could be improved with an exclamation mark, as with clue47. |
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| 51. Tight finish for England's youngest test player |
| 1. | The single link word isn't really appropriate here. |
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| 52. Two see Kent courtyard. |
| 1. | Nice idea but would have to be "Twice see" ? | | 2. | Perhaps 'twice' would be better, though even so the surface reading isn't particularly convincing. |
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| 53. Unruly lads to be ejected from 'Costa del Sol' resort's terrace? |
| 1. | Liked the wordplay but not convinced by terrace as a definition | | 2. | The 'be' is a bit clumsy | | 3. | Nice surface, but definition seems imprecise, 'be' seems redundant in wordplay and 'resort' isn't really an anagram indicator. |
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| 54. Waning, as time progresses, lit wick is trimmed |
| 1. | Definition seems a little loose, and the three elements seem a little disjointed. |
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| 56. Where you'd find cathedral or church in which praise is old-fashioned |
| 1. | Definition and wordplay blend well to produce a good surface reading. |
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| 57. With Lidl's opening, Tesco is running out of time around here |
| 1. | Original and topical | | 2. | Definition seems rather imprecise. | | 3. | Very nice, but a tad too clunky to get into the points for me. | | 4. | Easily the most imaginative clue, but, if definition is "around here", "around" cannot also be a.i., while “running” seems barely adequate | | 5. | Superb (and nicely topical) surface reading |
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